Frozen Yet Again
by Lisa Maria Novello
Summary: Nearly a year had passed since Arendelle had frozen, and now Anna and Kristoff are getting married (under Elsa's consent, of course)! But, when raiders come through the kingdom, their wedding is disrupted, and there's something very distinct about one of these raiders; he has ice powers.
1. Chapter 1: Raiders

_**AN: "I wish I did, but I don't own Frozen or any of its characters! XD"**_

* * *

**Frozen Yet Again**

**Chapter One: Raiders**

Gentle, spring sunlight shone through the tall windows of the castle, letting in a familiar warmth. The sound of a harbor bell rang loudly outside, and a muffled commotion could be heard in the streets below. Elsa stood by the windows, watching the people, all dolled up for the occasion, as they hurried into the chapel. She tried to grin and nervously heaved out a breath that she had been holding for quite awhile. This really is the day, she thought. Out of the blue, a loud yelp filled the hall. The queen, finally managing a real smile, went up to Anna's door and knocked.

"Anna? Is everything alright in there?" she called.

"No-o! This is... torture!" her sister replied dramatically. Elsa raised an eyebrow, half in amusement, and half in confusion.

"May I come in?" the queen asked.

"Yes, as long as you're El-ouch-Elsa."

Elsa gently pushed open the door, but stood abash at what she found behind it. There, in the room, stood four ladies-in-waiting pulling harshly at the strings of Anna's corset.

"Tighter," the princess urged. The four women tried their best to obey, and one ended up falling over because a string fell from her hand. Elsa eventually collected herself again and cleared her throat to talk.

"Anna," she started, getting her sister's attention, "may I ask why you want it so tight?"

"Well, this is my wedding day after all, and, you know, I just don't want to look like some big fat oaf in front of Kristoff," Anna explained, trying her best to face her sister.

"Anna, you're not fat," Elsa said.

"Really? Or are you just saying that to-"

"Really," the queen reassured her.

"Okay, good! You can stop tightening now!" Anna announced. All of the ladies-in-waiting fell over backwards, heaving sighs of relief. Elsa went up to her sister, an amused twinkle in her eye.

"Wow, Anna, I've never seen you act this... nervous before," the queen said. Anna bit her lower lip as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Eventually, she turned to face her sister.

"Yeah, but it's all because of the wedding. You made me wait almost a whole year for this, and now I just don't know, you know? What if Kristoff doesn't like me anymore? What if he doesn't want us to share in a life commitment? What if-"

"What if he's just as nervous as you are?" Elsa cut in. There was a long pause before Anna began to talk again.

"You think so?"

"I know so," Elsa comforted. Anna suddenly put on a bright grin.

"I can totally see Kristoff being scared about this. That just makes me feel the slightest bit better, actually!"

"I'm glad."

"So, could you help me get dressed? I don't think the maids will be coming-to at any moment," the princess giggled. Elsa complied and set to work loosening the threads on the corset and helping Anna into her dress. The outfit was breath-taking, admittedly; a long, white gown with an embroidered red bodice, loose sleeves, and a transparent, red shawl draped around the shoulders. A veil and crown were set up upon the princess's head once Elsa was finished doing up her sister's hair. The queen took a step back, admiring her beautifully transformed sister. She let out a sigh of contentment, turning away when she felt heat build up in her throat.

"You look so lovely, Anna," the queen began. "Kristoff will be speechless." At the compliment, the princess laughed, but her expression soon turned worried when she caught a glimpse of the sky outside. Anna went up to the window and opened it, confused when a cool breeze swept over her.

" What happened to the weather? Wasn't it really sunny just a few minutes ago?" the girl said, more to herself than to her sister. Elsa came up to the window, looking at the fast-approaching, gray clouds in seriousness. The queen slowly closed the panes.

"I think there's a chance that we'll be getting some rain this afternoon," Elsa sighed.

"What?! But the reception is set up outside!" Anna whimpered.

"Anna, it's going to be fine. We'll just move the reception into the ballroom."

"Okay, yeah. Yeah, that's good," Anna said, calming down.

"Good," Elsa started, " now let's get you to the chapel. Everyone's waiting."

~*O*o*O*~

It felt really odd to be in that enormous room with so many people, but to seldom hear a sound from any of them. The only thing she could hear was the occasional cough and the long, droning words of the minister. Boy, did she wish that their old minister hadn't died that winter. The previous man was quieter, politer, unlike the new, arrogant one that didn't let you speak a word without your tongue being bit off. Elsa pushed these thoughts away, and watched the couple standing in front of the man, their hands in each other's and their eyes staring directly into one another's. Love will never look anymore obvious than that, the queen thought to herself. Olaf sat next to her, contentedly and anxiously bouncing on the bench. The woman that sat on the snowman's other side was gradually scooting away from him as the ceremony went on. It had been almost a year, and the townspeople still hadn't gotten used to Olaf and his cloud of winter that hung over his head. Elsa, eyes still glued to the scene, patted Sven, who was standing at her right nobly.

"And now, under the heavenly watch of Idun and Agdar of Arendelle, and of our reigning queen, Elsa of Arendelle, we witness this joining of Princess Anna of Arendelle and Kristoff of unknown location-"

"Um, it's in The Valley of the Living Rock, you know, the trolls' home," Anna corrected with an a matter-of-factly smile. The minister stared at her for a moment.

"Whatever," the man said cruelly. He cleared his throat and faced the gathering of people once again. "Yes, um, Princess Anna of Arendelle and Kristoff of unknown location in Holy Matrimony. If we have any objections to this marriage, speak now or forever hold your peace," the minister recited, self-importantly.

"Elsa," Olaf whispered, poking at the queen's arm. She ignored him. "Psst! Elsa!" he whispered again, a bit louder.

"Olaf, what do you want? Does it have to be now?" the queen said, a bit annoyed. Sven, not wanting to be left out of the picture, listened in with a curious grunt.

"I think the ocean stopped moving," Olaf replied, turning his head towards the back window. The queen held his head and faced it forward again.

"Olaf, stop being ridiculous," she scolded.

"But, Elsa-"

"Shh! Be a good snowman," she pressed, focusing her gaze back towards Anna and Kristoff. Olaf frowned for a moment before continuing to pester his maker.

"Can you, maybe, look at the ocean for one minute?"

"Okay, okay," Elsa said, giving in. She turned her head, expecting to see no differences, but instead, saw that the ocean, like Olaf had said, had stopped moving. The waves were as still as a statue. The queen jumped up in a horrible mix of shock and fright, forgetting where she was for the instant. The minister blinked, surprised at the sudden action.

"Your Majesty? Do you object to this marriage?"

"Wh-what? No, um... please, continue the ceremony. I have to go and... check on something," she told. And with that, she sprinted out the door. Everyone in the room was left confused and slightly worried. After a few seconds of stiff silence, the minister turned back to the couple and continued with the words.

"Do you, Kristoff of unknown location, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded-"

"Um, so sorry, but can we like pause this for a second? Please," Anna suddenly interrupted, following her sister outside.

"Wait a minute! Anna!" Kristoff called, going after his wife-to-be. The minister sighed, closing his book shut, annoyance an obvious characteristic in his expression.

"Is anyone else going to leave this ceremony unanoun-" he suddenly stopped at the sound of the door opening once again, and he glanced to his right to see a snowman and a reindeer bounding out. The man groaned and threw his book at the floor.

"Elsa! Elsa!" Anna called out as she made her way to the harbor. Finally finding her run-away sister, she sighed with relief and followed her out onto the pier. Kristoff trailed close behind her.

"Elsa, what's going-" the princess suddenly stopped, and she and Elsa looked down in sync when the pier suddenly started to freeze. They backed up in fear.

"Ice?! Elsa, what's going on?!" Anna demanded of her sister. The queen looked at her hands in fright.

"I-I don't know," she said. The long-gone thoughts that she was a monster were cruelly returning.

"Elsa, why are you doing this? What's wrong?" the princess asked, reaching out for her sister. There was a long pause as Elsa closed her eyes.

"I'm... not doing it," the queen eventually told, relief but then a new fear washing over her.

"But if you're not, then who-"

"Something's coming," Kristoff cut in, pointing out at the horizon of the frozen sea. Both sister's, Olaf, and Sven looked in the direction he was pointing. They didn't see much at first, until Elsa spotted it; dozens of fast-approaching figures. The queen backed up in horror.

"Elsa, what do you-"

"Get inside."

"But Elsa-"

"Kristoff, take her inside now!" the queen commanded, a strange and powerful fire in her eyes. Frazzled, the boy quickly picked up his bride-to-be and ran to the chapel doors.

"And get the royal guard!" The queen yelled after them. In a flick of light, she had made ice skates for herself and was zooming down the sea. Olaf clumsily tried to follow after her, slipping on the ice. Sven, having the instinct to protect Kristoff and his fiance, sprinted after the two.

On the ice, everything looked so colorless and cloudy, but Elsa could clearly see the figures approaching. Once she got close enough, she speedily crafted a barrier of thick ice, preventing them from getting any closer to the castle. The figures proceeded forward, undaunted by the wall in front of them. They were just about to hit the barrier when suddenly, the head of the figures blasted sheets of snow from his hand and made a ramp up the ice.

"He has snow powers?!" the queen barely managed to breathe. Quickly regaining herself, she skated in front of the person and shot a series of sharp crystals directly at him. He mimicked her technique, and they soon created a giant, deformed sculpture. The masked person tried to escape her, but she blocked him yet again with a dangerous passage of ice spires. There is no way that I'm letting him near the castle, she thought. The person ran back the way he came, and just when Elsa let her guard down, he came speeding up in her direction again, making yet another ramp of hailstone.

"He wouldn't," Elsa thought aloud, but was completely shocked as the masked man traveled up the ramp, over the spires, and even over her own head. His teammates followed closely behind. The queen chased after them, her heart pounding with pure fright.

"No! Anna!" she screamed, her mind exploding with horrible thoughts about the raiders attacking the village.

Everyone inside the palace was unaware of what was going on, and all was quiet. Unexpectedly, the groom and bride came running back through the doors. The minister picked up his book from the floor, and opened it up again.

"Are we g-"

"I don't think we can continue with the wedding. Right now, I want all of the people to stay inside the chapel. Something's going on outside, but-don't panic, don't panic-my sister is looking into it," Anna explained, trying to imitate Elsa's nobleness as she faced the citizens. "Someone call the guards," she commanded. But one, silent moment after she said it, someone suddenly crashed through the back window, leaving a trail of snow behind him. A confused and terrified commotion instantly overwhelmed the room. Out of the blue, a dagger was throw in Anna's direction, and Kristoff pulled her down by the waist just before it could have hit her. They quickly ducked behind the row of pews when a wave of sleet was sent their direction.

"What?! Snow?! But only Elsa can do that!" Anna loudly whispered, staring at the ice hugging the wall.

"Apparently not," Kristoff replied, astonished and horrified at the same time. Not a second after he finished talking did Elsa suddenly skate in through the shattered back window, panting heavily like a dog in July. The queen quickly spotted the couple and soon joined them in their hiding place.

"Anna, Kristoff, are you alright?" she asked urgently.

"We're fine," Kristoff reassured her. Elsa looked down at the floor, trying to catch her breath.

"Elsa, one of them has your powers! How is that even possible? I didn't think that anyone else in the whole world could do what you can!" Anna said.

"I didn't think so, either."

"They're not after us, are they? What do they want here?"

"Castle treasure, no doubt," Elsa assumed. She looked up from behind the benches to view the damage done, quickly getting back down when ice spires were launched her way. She gazed at the couple before her, her eyes glistening with reluctance."Listen, both of you, I need you to lead everyone out of here through the cellar passage. I'll hold them off long enough so that you can escape," the queen said.

"What?! Please, Elsa, don't do it! There are too many for you to fight alone!" Anna begged.

"Please, Anna. I don't want anyone getting hurt." There was a stiff quiet as Anna bit her lower lip, looking down at the floor. Suddenly, she hugged her sister tight.

"Please be careful."

"I will," Elsa promised. She turned her gaze to Kristoff. "Take care of my sister." And on that note, she stood up and sped towards the attackers, shooting sleet at them. The couple stood soon after, calling the people to follow them.

Elsa managed to knock a few men unconscious, and soon enough, the royal guard came. But even with them, she realized all too quickly how out-numbered they were. Nonetheless, the queen held her guard and continued to blast snow at the raiders, but that's when their leader decided to show up. He shot sharp crystals at her without warning. She couldn't evade all of them, and ended up cutting her cheek on one of the ice pieces. The queen shook it off and was about to send a wave of sleet at the attackers, when one of them crept up behind her and hit her on the head with his fist. The world spiraled out of control, and before she knew it, she was out cold.

* * *

_**AN: "Please leave a review if you'd like to hear more! Every piece of feedback is appreciated! :D"**_


	2. Chapter 2: Cursed

_**AN: "I still don't own Frozen! XD"**_

* * *

**Chapter Two: Cursed**

A painful sound rang inside Elsa's head as she opened her eyes. Slowly, she sat up, her vision still horribly blurry. What happened? Why was everything so quiet? Where was she? All of these thoughts floated about in her mind as she shook the fuzz out of her eyes. Once she could see, the queen gasped and jumped up at the empty, frozen room before her. Instantly, she remembered it all; the wedding and the raiders. Elsa stumbled as she began to walk, worry quickly filling her to bursting.

"Anna! Kristoff!" she called, panicking. She heard nothing but her own voice echo through the halls. The queen's heart pounded hard. She gripped at her chest to keep it from exploding.

"Elsa! Under here!" a familiar voice sounded out from under her feet. Elsa, remembering that she told them to evacuate to the cellars, strode up to the hidden trapdoor, relieved to hear her sister's voice. Once the queen made it down, her eyes were greeted with a different, orange glow, caused by the fire that was lit. She cautiously pulled the trapdoor closed, and immediately she was hugged to death by her sister.

"You're okay!" Anna exclaimed.

"And you're fine, right?" the queen asked.

"Well, if by that you mean 'really, really cold', then yeah, I'm fine," her sister replied, pulling a blanket around herself.

"Where's Kristoff?"

"Stoking the fire."

"And he's alright?"

"Mm-hm."

"Your Majesty!" a town's person suddenly called out. Both sisters looked to where the voice was coming from and caught sight of a woman. "Thank the heavens you're not harmed. Please, Your Highness, melt the snow for us," she pleaded.

"Yes, Queen Elsa! Please, melt the snow!" another voice called out. Elsa smiled. Thawing the ice was an easy task. The queen closed her eyes, "loving" the cold as hard as she could. However, and in no time, she found out that it wasn't working. Reluctantly, she faced her people, a saddened expression in her eyes.

"I...can't," she admitted. The people stood as still as statues, all hope evaporating from them.

"Why not, Elsa? You did it before?" Anna asked, going up to her sister.

"I think...I think that only the person who made it can melt it," the queen theorized. Kristoff, suddenly coming into the conversation, slapped a hand over his face, groaning.

"Great. This is just perfect. Now we can just go waltzing up to the same guy, who could be a murderer, and say, 'Hey, um , can you, if you have the time, kind of unfreeze everything with a lot of love?" the man said, his words dripping painfully with sarcasm. Both sisters winced.

"Hey, how about we just do that? I'm sure Mr. Raider will understand," the familiar voice of Olaf sounded at their feet. His naivety in the field of sarcasm was as obvious as black on white. The group looked at him with pity.

"Olaf, sometimes you're innocence is just plain blinding," Elsa said.

"So, what can we do? None of us want to go into an ever-lasting winter again," Anna started up. There was a break in the conversation, a deadly kind of break. Elsa was the first to speak.

"There's only one thing to do," the queen sighed. Kristoff inched forward.

"And what would that be?" he asked, already having an idea of what the answer was.

"I have to go after him," Elsa told them. Of course, Anna would protest.

"Elsa, no. He already took you down once, and I don't think he'll be very sparing the next time around," the princess said.

"Yeah, and he'll like seriously injure you if he sees you again," Olaf noted, oblivious to the fact that that was what Anna had said.

"I'm going," the queen firmly declared, "and I'm going to kill him." Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf were taken aback that something like that would come out of Elsa's mouth.

"Elsa, you don't... mean kill him, do you?" the princess pleaded with her sister. After a while, Elsa sighed.

"I think it's the only way. I don't believe he'll be changing his ways anytime soon, so... I'll have to," she said, eyes downcast.

"But, Elsa, you can't just leave me and Kristoff in charge of the whole kingdom," Anna noted.

"I'm better off going. I can't feel cold. I can live in this cold... But, you and Kristoff... you can't... And I have to leave someone at the head of the kingdom."

"You're not serious, are you, Elsa? I'm an Anna! I don't know how to rule a kingdom! And he's a Kristoff! He's an ice harvester; he can't be a king!"

"Yes, he can. You can. Kristoff's nice, right?"

"Yeah, fairly."

"Then that's all he'll need in this cold. Our people of Arendelle, and probably the people of neighboring kingdoms, only need that. People aren't going to be asking for treaties to be signed. They're going to be asking for things like spare blankets, warmth," Elsa said. Anna looked down at her toes, feeling a heat catch in her throat. After a long pause, the princess looked up at her sister again.

"When are you leaving?" she asked.

"Dawn. Just at the break of dawn."

~*O*o*O*~

The sun's rays made the ice glow off the sea, and to the eye it looked like a sparkling wonder. A light mist hung in the air, and the queen felt it begin to snow. She looked out to the horizon, intimidated by its sheer size. Rough, cloth pants hugged her legs and she had fixed her hair into a familiar braid so that it wouldn't get into her face. A cloak was draped around her shoulders, a dagger was strapped to her side, and she carried a satchel. Elsa turned back around, facing Arendelle. Her friends stood on the pier, each only realizing that this was good-bye for quite a while. Anna suddenly ran out of Kristoff's grasp, lunging into her sister's arms.

"I really, really, really don't want you to go, Elsa!"

"I know. I'll be back, okay?" the queen promised. Kristoff came out onto the ice, Sven's reigns in hand.

"If you're really going, you should take Sven with you," the boy said, handing the reigns to Elsa. The queen looked touched as she took them from him.

"But won't you miss him?" Elsa asked. Sven grunted, as if asking the same question.

"Yeah, I'll miss him! But, he's a good reindeer, and... he's strong so just in case you get into any trouble, he's got your back," Kristoff replied, turning away when he felt the tears coming. "Yep, he's got your back..."

"It took him a lot of therapeutic conversation for me to convince him to give Sven to you," Anna whispered into her sister's ear. Elsa nodded in a way that told Anna, "I didn't need to know that." The queen was just about to leave, when Olaf suddenly protested.

"Elsa, I've made up my mind. I officially forbid you to leave," the snowman announced.

"Olaf, I'll be fine," the queen chuckled.

"But what if you won't be? What if there are other, para-psychological snow creations out there? What if they're mean to you? There has to be a snowman there to stand up for you."

"Olaf, really, I'll be okay. I have Sven. He's enough of a guard."

"See! See how you changed 'you'll be fine' to 'you'll be okay'? 'Okay' isn't acceptable," the snowman insisted. Elsa was about to tell him to stay, when Kristoff put a hand on her shoulder.

"Might as well. It's not like he can die, anyway," he said, shrugging. Elsa laughed a bit into her hand.

"Alright, Olaf. I accept," she told the snowman. Olaf bounced up to her happily.

"I knew you would reconsider," he said. Elsa looked back up at Anna and Kristoff, hesitation swimming in her eyes. She abruptly turned away and climbed up on Sven's back.

"Mark my words, this snow will end," she nobly told them. And with that, she took hold of Sven's reigns and was riding away into the mist with Olaf clinging to the reindeer's tail. The couple stood silently on the pier, Arendelle suddenly on top of their shoulders.

"Hurry back," the princess muttered, staring out at the frozen sea. Slowly, she walked back to the castle, and Kristoff held her close to keep her warm.

Elsa squinted her eyes because it was so difficult to see in the fog. Snow whacked at her face as she rode farther and farther out onto the sea. Grunting, Sven kicked Olaf on top of his back, probably annoyed at his tail being constantly pulled. The snowman spat out a hairball before talking.

"Um, Elsa, where are we going?" he asked, holding on to the queen's arm so that he wouldn't fall off.

"The Valley of the Living Rock," she responded, focusing her gaze on the obstacles of ice ahead. Skillfully, she avoided them, nearly sending Olaf flying off Sven's back. He clumsily regained himself yet again, holding on to Elsa's arm for dear life.

"Wouldn't it be easier if we took the pleasant trail in the forest?" he said. Elsa dodged another ice spire before replying.

"When Anna was hurt years ago, it took me and my parents a while to get to the valley, but if we use a shortcut across the ice, we should arrive lot faster. We can't afford to waste time."

"Why are we going to the trolls' home, anyway? I hate it there; it smells like Kristoff's feet!"

"The trolls are bound to know something about this snowstorm and its maker. I need some sort of a plan before I face him," she said. Directly after she said it, they hit the thick woods, the ride becoming much smoother all of a sudden. Olaf sighed in relief, glad that he would finally stop bouncing around so uncomfortably.

Animals scattered throughout the forest looked up in alert, and the dead, sparkling branches of the willow trees flew up when Elsa charged past them. After a while, they came to a border of moss-hugged boulders. The queen jumped off of Sven's back with one, flexible motion. She slid down one of the boulders into a the familiar valley of impossibly round rocks. She pushed back her cloak hood politely, and the reindeer and snowman, still on the edge of the valley, followed her into the dip.

"Please come out! I need to talk with you!" she called. The rock trolls around the group rolled up to the queen, uncurling themselves.

"Queen Elsa!" a particularly tiny troll exclaimed in wonder. "Are you here to tell us about the wedding?" he asked, expecting an immediate and enthusiastic 'yes!' from the queen. Elsa opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by yet another troll.

"Let's celebrate, for now our Kristoff is married!" he yelled out.

"To none other than a princess!" one of them added.

"A really pretty princess!" Olaf shouted with them. Sven grunted, getting excited.

"Oh, Kristoff is so lucky to have a girl like Anna!"

"Did he look okay? I'm sure Anna looked good, but our Kristoff was never a dude," Bulda questioned, raising her hand up so that she could be seen through the crowd of rock-like creatures.

"Did he cry?" the little one cut in again before Elsa could talk.

"Oh, we must know everything about it, Queen Elsa!" Kristoff's adoptive mother called out again, pushing herself through the flock of trolls.

"Please! Please," Elsa yelled, then calmly said. "They aren't quite married yet."

"What? 'Meaning they're saying their vows right now?" Cliff, Kristoff's adoptive father, asked, suddenly coming into the conversation.

"No, sadly they're not. The wedding is going to be put off for a while," Elsa told them, instantly receiving gasps of shock.

"But why? I thought that they couldn't wait to marry each other!" Bulda exclaimed with a pitifully sad expression on. Elsa knelt down to their level.

"We were attacked-" more gasps cut her off. "By a person with-"

"Your powers," an elderly voice finished. Pabbie suddenly came through the crowd, gazing up at the queen with a tired yet wise gleam in his eyes.

"Oh, Pabbie. You're awake," Cliff commented. The old troll shook his heavy head.

"How could I sleep? It was too cold for dreaming," he grumbled to him.

"But... but how could you feel it? This place is an oasis," Elsa asked.

"Yeah, and its melting me," Olaf added in. The queen let out a light gasp, remembering that Olaf needed a constant cloud over him. She spun one with her magic, apologizing.

"I felt the cold in the wind. When your bones grow brittle and sensitive, you'll know what I mean," the old troll replied. "Did you come here to get help, Queen Elsa?" he questioned her. Something in his voice was firm and dark. The queen nodded, all hesitance pushed away by the thought of stopping the snowfall.

"Queen Elsa, Pabbie, please tell us what's going on! I can see that its not just me that's getting worried back here," Bulda started up, her eyes pleading.

"Did anything bad happen to Kristoff or Anna?" a baby troll asked from Elsa's feet, tugging at her pants. The snowman started tugging at the other leg just because it looked so satisfying to do. Unfortunately, his stick hand soon got caught on the pant threads as he tried to let go.

"All of you, don't worry. Nothing bad happened. Nobody's hurt," the queen promised. She pulled Olaf off of her, slightly annoyed with him.

"But if someone doesn't stop this soon, everyone will be," Pabbie said out of the blue. Their was a sad look frosted over Elsa's eyes for the smallest second, but it was soon replaced her usual nobleness.

"Pabbie, could you tell me what you know about this ice person? Anything at all?" she urged almost out of no where. The elderly troll paused for a moment.

"I know something very particular that makes him different from you, Queen Elsa," he responded.

"Of course they're different! Mr. Raider isn't a queen!" Olaf declared a bit stupidly. The troll gave him a glance covered in amusement.

"No, there's something else," Pabbie coughed. "Queen Elsa, your powers are a gift. You were born with them, and they can easily become beautiful," he began,"but this man. He wasn't born with these powers... He was cursed with them."

"Cursed?" Elsa repeated, nearly choking on her own tongue. Shivers ran down her back at the way the troll had said the word. Pabbie turned around, and with a jerk of his hand he started to spin hazy images in the air.

"His power is evil, and it can never be used for good," the troll said, the pictures he was creating turning frightening shades of red and black, "and if he continues to roam freely, ice will soon cover the whole land. Everything, everyone, will be frozen forever. Even this oasis."

"How do I stop him?" Elsa quickly asked before she could hear anything more. The troll's misty images above them evaporated as he turned back to face her again.

"I have to say that my old eyes haven't seen many of the bewitched or cursed, but I'll assume that unless his evil ways are undone by an act of true love, you must-,"

"I must kill him. And if that's the only way, so be it," the queen cut him off. They stared at each other for what seemed like eternities, each giving the other different promises through their eyes. The silence was broken when they heard a brief crackling sound above them. They immediately noticed the ice crawling up the overhead boulders.

"You have to hurry, Queen Elsa! Time is precious!" Pabbie speedily told her. The queen quickly collected herself and hitched a leg over Sven's back, pulling Olaf up after her.

"Follow the frost. It's bound to lead you to him." the troll advised. "And also watch yourselves. I've been sensing something horribly amiss around here ever since the snowfall," he warned. Elsa gripped the reindeer's reigns, preparing to take off.

"Thank you," she said. The queen was just about ready to charge up the slope, when she paused and looked back at the trolls. "Thank you," she repeated.

"For what? You've already thanked me."

"For saving Anna fourteen years ago." An with that, she rode up the slope. Sven made a mighty jump over the hedge of boulders and then, they disappeared into the thickness of the forest. The trolls stood gazing out to where she ran off, each silently wishing that the queen be safe on her journey.

Elsa charged after the fast-trailing ice, determination flooding her mind. He was close. He was very close. She kept her eyes on the snow path, expecting it to keep in the trees, but she was utterly shocked when the ice turned off the forest ground and onto a lake. The queen quickly went after it, shooting snow on the frozen water to keep Sven from slipping. Abruptly, a creepy, ghost-like sound came up from under their feet, and Olaf was the only one who seemed to notice it. When he looked down at the lake, he screamed at the sight of a face peering up at them, a face with no pupils. He blinked and it disappeared. Nervously, he set himself back down.

Suddenly, an ear-splitting cracking sound filled the forest. The group look down to discover that the ice under them was breaking. Sven, on instinct, broke out into a mad dash to try and make it back to the forest. As if the goddess of misfortune was looking down upon them, the group felt the ground beneath them give way. The reindeer began to thrash while Olaf made a show, climbing up on top of the animal's head in fear. Elsa, realizing that they were sinking in, for the first time in a long time, lost her regal, calm composure and began to scream. There was a second of falling, before suddenly, they hit... soft ground?

* * *

_**AN: "I would like to thank my first two followers: Tank234 and josh. pichette. 104. Thanks so much for your support! :D If you would like to hear more, please leave a review!"**_


	3. Chapter 3: Facing the Threat

_**AN: " Let's just say I will NEVER own Frozen, EVER. ;D"**_

* * *

**Chapter Three: Facing the Threat**

All was quiet.

Elsa slowly cracked open an eye, a whole different form of awe filling her as she gazed at where she was. Snow. Snow mounds all over. Befundlement grew in her faster than anything when she looked up, and spotted the hole that they fell through. Sven pulled his head from the snow, shaking the rest of it off like a dog as he stood up, and Olaf was busy trying to find his torso. The queen ran a hand through the snow, still recovering from the fresh thoughts of an early death.

"Wh-what? Where... are we?" she asked more to herself than to her company. She stood, legs wobbling, and Sven quickly came to her side. She patted him lightly on the head, glancing nervously around them. Just then, a familiar crackling noise echoed through the place. The whole group looked up only to see that the hole above them was being masked over with thick ice. Elsa was the first to start panicking.

"Oh no! No, no, no! Please, don't close, don't close!" she yelled. Involuntarily, she blasted a wave of sleet at it. The action, unfortunately, just caused the hole the seal quicker, and suddenly, all was pitch dark. Elsa blushed at her own stupidity, and thanked her lucky stars that no one too important was there to see it. Olaf eventually started to scream.

"GYYYAA! It's dark! It's dark! It's dark and we're dead!" he screeched dramatically. Unexpectedly, Elsa lit a torch, smiling at her snowy friend.

"I didn't come unprepared," she told him, chuckling.

"Oh, the saving light! I worship thee-ow, ow, ow!" he started to say, until he accidentally touched the flame. A tiny fire grew on the end of his stick hand, and Sven quickly tossed the him into a snow pile before the fire could spread.

"Don't come too close, Olaf. I don't want you to melt," the queen warned.

Curiosity, bit by bit, crept over her, and she inched toward the end of the space. It was only then when she realized that it wasn't just a space, but a whole labyrinth. She lifted up the torch into the tunnels, and even with its light, she found that each passage was still too dark to see through. Olaf timidly shuffled up to her, a pitifully depressing expression on his face.

"Elsa," he started, "why are there tunnels underwater?" Elsa paused, just realizing how abnormal it all was.

"I... I don't... know," she responded, switching her torch-lit gaze to a different passageway. "How could someone carve these? This water only just turned into ice hours ago."

"We're going to die in here," the snowman suddenly said, shocking his maker and recieving an uncomfortable grunt from Sven.

"Calm down, Olaf. We're not going to die," she reassured him. The queen kept on analyzing the tunnels, until she stopped at one at the far end of the space. "All we have to do is find our way out of here, and I think that this tunnel is our best bet to the surface," Elsa said. Sven tilted his head.

"Why?" the snowman questioned, his facial expression a familiar mix of legitimate confusion and shock.

"I can feel a strong wind coming from this one, and it appears to travel in an upward slant. Up and wind mean surface," she explained smartly. "We don't have much time. We have to move," she told them, going through the passage. Olaf and Sven followed her cautiously.

While walking in the passage way, all that could be heard was the wind grinding against the walls, and the echoes of their own feet as they crunched the snow beneath them. Elsa raised the torch to get a better look at the school of fish, frozen in the wall above them. She jerked back in fright when the light revealed a long, monstrous creature with noticeable teeth. Olaf gulped nervously, keeping his eye on the shark as they passed it, almost like it would lunge at them any second.

The journey through the caverns slowly turned steeper and steeper, and their torch grew dim with the minutes. Soon, all their light was was a collection of dying, hot cinders on a wet stick of wood. Elsa abrubtly stopped, dropping her bag and setting herself down against the cave wall. Olaf and Sven plopped down on either side of her, each watching in inquisitiveness as she pulled out a map of the mountains and kingdoms. She spread it over her legs, tracing a finger over the yellowed paper. After a moment of staring at it, Elsa sighed in frustration.

"The lake doesn't appear to be on the map, so I have no idea where we are. Hopefully, we haven't wandered too far from civilization," she said, stuffing the parchments back into her bag. The queen looked out to the long walk that still laid ahead of them, a pensive gleam in her eyes. Unexpectedly, she stood up, wandering around the cavern and picking up pieces of wood. She hapazardly set them down where Olaf and Sven sat, kneeling and starting a fire.

"We'll stop here for the day," the queen announced, sitting back down against the wall. The reindeer groaned happilly, dropping his head onto Elsa's bag, using it as a crude pillow. Elsa winced as she heard her papers crinkle. She silently prayed that none of them ripped.

"Okay, guys. You do that while I keep watch for the woman with no eyeballs," the snowman said, shuffling in front of them protectively. The queen lifted her head in sudden interest.

"The woman with no eyeballs? Olaf, is this another one of Kristoff's stories?" she asked.

"Nope. I saw her before we fell in. I think she wants to devour our souls and interior organs or something like that," he replied, almost like it was a completely natural idea to him. Elsa's face crinkled up in both disgust and admiration at the fantasy.

"Olaf, I think it was all in your head. Why don't you just come over-"

"Nope. I vowed that I would protect you from other parapsychological things, and that's what I'm going to do." And on that note, the snowman sat down stubbornly, staring out into one of the tunnels to the right of them. The queen looked with pity at the inertly placed Olaf, before rolling over onto Sven's stomach contentedly. (Typically, when reindeer lie down like that, that means that they're either sick or dying, but Kristoff brought Sven up like a dog.) He'll eventually give it up, she thought. After a while, Olaf finally gave in, and she felt him plop down next to her. She smiled, pulling him in and waiting for the dreams to come.

But as she slept, her ears were filled with alien whispers that seemed to be echoing through the tunnels, and she could have sworn that she felt a hand brush her face. However, when she opened her eyes, no one was there. A bit spooked and suddenly feeling goosebumps crawl over her skin, she slowly laid back down, keeping both eyes open even though they grew heavier with the minutes. Nervously, she sat up and began to stoke the fire, hoping that some light would ease her nerves. As soon as the flames were big enough, she settled herself back against Sven's warm belly. She listened expectantly for more eerie whispers, but suddenly, they all just seemed to seize.

Gradually, she drifted off into a deep sleep, her mind still trying to obliterate the memory of the hushed voices.

~*O*o*O*~

Elsa was greeted by a warm, wet lick on the cheek as she woke up, and reluctantly she opened her eyes and instantly saw Sven's furry face looming over her own. She quickly sat up, avoiding the line of drool that was about to fall on her. Sighing, she patted the reindeer kindly.

"I see you're an early riser," she commented, trying not to breath in through her nose, aware of how horrible Sven smelled. The queen attempted to wipe the slobber off of her cheek, but Sven only ended up licking it again, as if he wanted it to stay wet. Elsa turned her attention to Olaf, who was sleeping soundly against her, snowflakes evacuating his mouth as he exhaled. She poked him lightly.

"Kristoff, I'm not clean yet. Don't pierce your nose for her mother," the snowman mumbled in his sleep. Elsa pulled back as if she just heard a deep, dark secret.

"Olaf, we're heading out now. Get up," she said, rolling him over. He slowly raised his head, smacking his lips together, looking up at his maker.

"Elsa, Minister Odin should never offer to pierce Kristoff's nose for any charity bunsiness what-so-ever," he said, probably referring to his dream. Elsa smiled at her friend.

"I assume you slept soundly," she remarked. "C'mon, let's go. We don't have much time to waste," she quickly put in, swinging her satchel over her shoulder. And so, the group wandered deeper into the labrynth.

They kept on walking, chatting every once in a while, when Elsa suddenly stopped at the edge of a steep drop. She and Sven stared at it, already filling with intimidation. Olaf shuffled in front of them, blinking at the slope unbelievingly.

"Okay, um, let's go back-" the snowman started to say before Elsa held him in place.

"No. I see an opening up ahead, so I think that this is our way out," she told him, pointing beyond the hills of ice below them.

"Wait, wait, wait, how're we gonna get dow-" Olaf stopped talking as Elsa gave him a raised eyebrow of amusement. The queen turned back to the drop and began to craft a staircase of ice down it. She began to walk down them, a smug bounce in her step.

"Oh yeah," Olaf said, reminding himself that Elsa had snow magic. He quickly followed after her, and Sven, giving a grunt of excitement, stepped on the staircase. The animal instantly slipped and was sent bobbing down the stairs on his butt.

After a minute or so, the group finally reached the end of the tunnel, and as they stepped out onto the surface, familiar, gray sunlight instantly hit their eyes. A sudden sense of relievement washed over Elsa and she let out a small laugh, unbelieving that they actually made it out. Speedilly, she collected herself, holding back squeals of happiness as she turned around to face her company.

"Well, we're out," she announced. Sven, obviously bursting with contentment, began to bounce around, enjoying all of the open space. Elsa smiled for a second, but the smile almost immediately evaporated, being replaced with an anxious frown. The queen slowly turned around, viewing their surroundings with a fearful expression on her face. There was an uncomfortable pause as her eyes darted from one, steep rock face to another.

"Where are we?" Elsa breathed, stepping back in uneasiness. Olaf bounced up to Elsa, following her concerned gaze.

"Lost, I think," the snowman replied, nodding at the mountain. Elsa bit her lip at such a sentance. The reindeer trotted up to them, looking up the rock face then back at Elsa. His tongue hung out in dog-like enthusiam, as if he expected her to start climbing at any moment. But, instead, Elsa slupmed down into the snow, still staring hard at the rock face. She looked like she was near tears.

"We're probably miles and miles away from him," she muttered pitifully. Sven grunted in innocent confusion, still wondering why Elsa wasn't climbing. Olaf shuffled a bit closer to his maker, sensing the tears soon to come.

"But that's okay, you know. We can just find another way. Then once we find Mr. Raider, you can execute him any way you want," the snowman comforted.

"Olaf, the storm is growing stronger, and the country-" the queen was interruppted as Sven nudged her shoulder, gesturing for her to look at the sky. The queen complied, and set her eyes upward, shocked at what she saw. Clumsilly, she stood up, watching the gray clouds overhead sweep past the mountain. She quickly noticed thay turned darker the closer they were to the peak. She and Olaf exchanged glances, and speedilly she made a hill of snow up the mountain side. The group sprinted up hill, all determined to see what was on the other side, and once they made it all the way up, each stood in bewilderment at the epic sight before them.

Black clouds loomed over the valley below, and an impressive snowfall veiled everything. The pines in the center of the storm swayed violently in the wind. Elsa looked at her snowman with newly-found hope, and then abrubtly jumped on Sven's back. Olaf mimicked her, and in a flicker of light, they were bolting down into the valley.

The strong wind tugged at Elsa's long, blonde locks as she rode straight into the blizzard, and the sleet around them wacked at her face ruthelessly. They were practically riding blind as the heavy snowfall blocked their vision, until they reached the eye of the storm. That's when all turned suddenly calm.

The queen climbed off the reindeer's back quietly, expecting the raider to attack at any moment. When she figured that it was safe, she lead Olaf and Sven deeper into the valley. As they continued to sneak, out of nowhere, Elsa heard the sound of shuffling feet. She harshly pulled the reindeer and snowman behind a cluster of small pine trees, and there she watched, tension filling the air. She stood, absolutely breathless, as a recognizable, masked man walked out into the middle of the valley, his back facing them. Elsa watched him in bewilderment for a moment, but her eyebrows soon knit together in rage as she remembered what the man did to Arendelle, to Kristoff, to Anna...

She lifted her hand up, ready to fire a wave of her sharpest sleet at him. The queen hesitated for a second, and then she let her rage flow from her hand, running out from behing the trees. The masked man jerked back in shock, Elsa's ice spires just grazing his cheek. He fought back, still trembling with terrible surprise. Elsa shot another series of crystals at him, and he blocked them with a wall of ice. The stranger tried to make a run for it, but Sven stopped him dead in his tracks, aiming a pair of threatening antlers at him. He ran the other way, stopping when he's blocked by Olaf.

"Stop right there, Mr. Raider!" the snowman commanded. The man let out a muffled scream that sounded something like, " GYAA! It's alive!" Elsa used this moment of shock to blast him with her powers, and that time, he couldn't escape it, and was blown an impressive distance away, knocked out cold.

Elsa stood straight up in shock, staring at the toppled-over trees the dead silent man laid in...

She got him?! She got him _this_ quickly?!

* * *

_**AN: "May I just say thank you so very, very much for all of your feedback? You guys are the fuel of this story, and your words of **_**_criticism, encouragement, ect., always make my day! :D_**

_**Thank you to my eight favoriters: Pabulover123, SarahCHarper, SnowQueenElsaOfArendelle101, The Undersea Princess, frozensnowflakegirl, gelgela29, iamloveCynder, and meanandtheboys~!**_

_**Thank you to my eleven followers: Pabulover123, Red Riding Hoodie, SarahCHarper, SnowQueenElsaOfArendelle101, Tank234, gelgela29, iamloveCynder, jessiemg, josh. pichette. 104, meandtheboys, and tweetybird53~!**_

_**And thank you to my three reviewers: Froyo the Movie, meandtheboys, and Jess~!**_

_**Please keep leaving feedback! It helps many, many writers improve and press on. XD **_


	4. Chapter 4: Amnesia?

_**A.N. "By now, I'll just have to except that I'll never own Frozen or any of its characters."**_

* * *

**Chapter Four: Amnesia?**

There was an astonished silence for a moment as the group stared at where the criminal had crashed. Elsa leaned forward a bit, shading her eyes with her hand to get a better view of the scene. Olaf glanced at the queen then looked back at the wreck of broken trees.

"Um... what just happened?" the snowman asked in his unique naivety. Sven groaned, bounding up to the unconscious man.

"I have no idea, but whatever that was, I think we've caught our culprit," Elsa responded, following the overly-excited reindeer. As soon as she got to the wreckage, she leaned back in surprise at the sight before her. For the first time, she could clearly see the criminal's face. It was a face that had ice crawling all over it in ugly, crooked patterns. The man had snow-pale skin and white clothes. Blue ice hugged the white fabric in sharp, twisted swirls, and his hair was an impossibly light shade of brown. Each strand looked almost like it was beaded with crystals. His mask must have been blown off on impact, the queen thought. Elsa cocked her head to the side, and soon Olaf came up to them.

"He's dead, right?" Olaf asked, poking at the man curiously.

"No," Elsa replied, gesturing to the raider's rising and falling stomach. "But he will be." And on that note, she unsheathed the dagger at her side. Olaf gulped and Sven backed away as they watched the weapon gleam dangerously against the snow. Elsa raised it high, ready to end this snow, ready to end this man, ready to end this monster. But when the word monster came into mind, Elsa abruptly stopped, remembering something.

_"Monster!" the Duke yelled, pointing a sharp finger at her. A baby began to cry and its mother hid him protectively, watching Elsa with fear-stricken eyes..._

Elsa blinked, shaking the thought out of her head. She brought the dagger down swiftly, but just before it struck, she stopped once again.

_"No, please!" Elsa pleaded with the soldiers. Regardless, they fired their arrows at her, and she was lucky that she was able to block them with ice..._

The girl stared down at the sleeping man. She stared hard, trying to hold back furious tears. In a flick of light, she'd thrown the dagger at the ground, angry and practically at war with herself. Why couldn't she do it?

"I can't! I just can't!" the queen breathed, turning away from the raider.

"But what about the blizzard?" Olaf asked, his eyes shining with sad confusion. Elsa lifted her head, facing her friends. He was right. What about the blizzard? She didn't know, and looked back at the unconscious criminal. Suddenly, her eyebrows knit together in anger and she strode up to the man. She crafted heavy chains of ice and wrapped them around the raider's chest, strapping his arms to his sides.

"Oooh! What's that for?" the snowman questioned.

"I've decided what we're going to do."

"What?"

"We're going back to Arendelle to work it out there. I don't know why, but-" her words evaporated as she noticed something. There wasn't a breeze and the snow was falling so gently. "The storm... What happened to it?" she asked. Olaf looked up, just realizing how calm it all was, and Sven gave a grunt of pleasure at the sight of such slow snowfall. There was a moment of quiet, but Elsa soon shrugged it off, going back to her task of tying up the raider. Once the chains were good and tight around him, she bound them with a seal of ice.

"Okay, Sven, come here," Elsa called. The reindeer bounded over happily. "I need you to carry him for a bit," she said, throwing the man atop the animal's back with a powerful uplift of snow. Sven almost immediately rejected the job and shook the man off with a look of disgust.

"Sven! Please, just for a bit!" the queen begged. Eventually, the animal gave in with a bit of bribery (Elsa promised to buy him a whole cart full of carrots once they got back to Arendelle). Then, without anymore hesitations, they quickly started back for the kingdom.

While walking through the mountains, Elsa studied her maps carefully, growing more and more puzzled the farther they traveled. She took her eyes from the map to view her surroundings, and she almost instantly frowned with concern at the many miles of mountain passes ahead of them. The queen sighed in discouragement before continuing through the snow, and her company trudged tiredly after her.

Suddenly, they heard a high-pitched screech sound out from behind them. All of them whirled around in alarm, and just in the nick of time to see something slip swiftly behind a boulder.

"Something's following us," Elsa noted urgently. Just after the words fell from her mouth, the same screech was heard again. That time, it came from above them. The queen looked up, only to see something horrifying. It was a ghostly woman with nothing but white in her eyes and a head sprouting ice spires.

In a flash, the thing lunged toward them, but luckily, the group dodged it. They all stepped back in terror as the evil thing raised its head to look at 's two, sharp saber's teeth glinted when it smiled at them maliciously. It was just about to take another leap at them, when Elsa blasted spires its way. Skillfully the thing avoided them, and sped toward the queen, its mouth open impossibly wide. The queen blocked it with a wall of ice, breathlessly sprinting the other direction with her company at her heels. Letting out another high-pitched noise, the creature broke through the ice and followed the group. Elsa, scared out of her mind, threw a wave of crystals at it, and that time they hit, and the creature was instantly knocked off the side of the mountain.

Elsa panted hard, her arms still spread out in defense. Cautiously, the group bent over the edge of the cliff to see what became of the monster, but when they finally got a good view of the ground below, there was nothing there. Olaf backed up in fright, clinging to his maker's leg.

"I don't like it here, Elsa. My insides almost threw up," the snowman suddenly admitted.

"Olaf, you don't have any insides."

"Then my soul almost threw up," he retorted, still staring down the mountain side. The queen sent a look of disgust at her friend when, out of the blue, they heard the creature's shrill crying yet again.

"It's still alive and there are probably more," Elsa told her company.

"Do you know what it was, Elsa?" the snowman questioned.

"No. This journey just keeps getting weirder and weirder," she said. "Let's keep going. I don't want to run into that thing again." Olaf and Sven didn't need to be told that twice and were quickly leading the way down the mountain. As they continued on, Elsa put her papers away, just as mystified as ever. Whatever that mountain pass was, whatever that lake was, and whatever those underwater tunnels were, there had to be a reason that they weren't on her maps.

~*O*o*O*~

Sunset rolled along with the hours, and Elsa grew more scared the darker the sky turned. She glanced back in alert when she thought she heard something following them, and she shifted into a defensive stance whenever they heard a high-pitched screech. She knew that they couldn't travel by night in the mountains and that they had to set up camp sooner or later, but she didn't want to risk stopping and being cornered by a gang of white-eyed ghost women. Sven suddenly gave an impatient groan as if he were asking, "Are we there yet?" The queen hugged him around the neck, sighing in sympathy.

"Just a little longer, okay?" she comforted, continuing on her trail down the mountain. That's when she spotted it; it was a cave further down the cliff. She gave a small grin at the finding.

"I think I've found a place were we can rest for a bit," she announced. Surprisingly, she didn't receive any complaints about it, and they all headed towards the cave eagerly, each just glad that it was at least some kind of shelter.

The group reached the hollow in practically no time. Elsa immediately set to work getting a fire going, Sven just plain dropped his human cargo with a loud thump and plopped down onto the floor like it was some kind of reindeer heaven, and Olaf managed to find himself the comfiest corner of the cave. Soon, the fire grew huge, and just a moment after it did, Elsa suddenly stopped hearing the shrill cries of the snow creatures. She glanced outside, theories and suspicions rapidly filling her thoughts. She shook the thoughts out of her head for the moment, concentrating on her main concerns: where they were and how they would find a way back to Arendelle. The queen gazed out at the horizon, squinting her eyes to see if she could spot anything she could recognize.

"We can't see the castle from here, so we have to be somewhere past the North Mountain," Elsa figured. "If only I knew where..." she murmured, hugging her knees to her chest.

"Elsa, suddenly I really miss Anna and Kristoff..." Olaf admitted. Sven moaned in grief at the sound of Kristoff's name. This had been the longest he'd been separated from the boy, and he was the only human Sven knew who could understand reindeer language.

"I do too," Elsa mumbled. Out of the blue, the group heard a pained groan sound out from behind them. They all spun around, shocked to see that the prisoner was stirring from sleep. Elsa stood up, quickly moving into a protective position with her hands aimed towards the man. The prisoner moaned through gritted teeth, shaking his head of the blur, but when he seemed to realize that he was bound up, his eyes widened and he began to struggle.

"Don't be shocked. With the crimes you've committed against Arendelle, you should be grateful that I haven't killed you yet, " Elsa said, her anger bubbling up inside of her like a volcano about to blow its top. The prisoner looked up at her, and cautiously he scooted back in what looked like a horrible mix of shock and fear.

"What..? A-Arendelle?" he stammered, sounding just as perplexed as ever. Elsa's stare turned into something from a nightmare, and she blasted him with snow, causing him to hit the cave wall with a loud thud. The man groaned as a pain shook his back, and he sluggishly sat up again. The queen lowered her hands, her murderous eyes still glued to the "mystery man".

"I wouldn't try any of that 'acting innocent' if I were you," she warned. "I'd recognize you anywhere, so don't even dare to say you don't know Arendelle." There was an odd silence hanging in the air then. It stayed for a while before the stranger cleared his throat.

"Look... you've got to have the-the wrong person here! I don't know about anything you're talking about, and I don't... well, I don't remember knowing anyone named Arendelle!" he pleaded with Elsa. The queen narrowed her eyes at him, unbelieving that, despite her warning, the man would even think about getting funny with her. Slowly, she pulled the dagger from her side, inching towards the raider, and Olaf and Sven backed up, ready to see a dead man within a second.

"You'd waste your life on a joke?!" she questioned, bringing the side of her dagger painfully close to the man's neck. His eyes nervously darted from the weapon to Elsa, and bravely he gulped in a breath of air, which he thought would be his last.

"No?" he breathed, unsure if that was the right answer.

"Then don't taunt me," the queen said through gritted teeth. She kept her gaze on him for a moment, before slowly sheathing her weapon. The queen walked back to the fire, tossing another log into it's core, and the stranger stared at her for a while, as if he were mentally putting a puzzle together.

"Okay, Mr. Raider, I want to be as nice to you as I can before your execution, so hi! I'm Olaf, and I like warm hugs!" Olaf suddenly greeted the prisoner, going up to him with his arms open. The man scooted back, his eyes wide and unbelieving at the sight of a living snowman.

"How are you possible?" the stranger asked in astonishment.

"Y'know, honestly, I have no idea myself, but I think it's magical," Olaf responded, sitting down next to the man. The prisoner slowly nodded his head, probably thinking that he was going insane, when abruptly, he realized just what kind of mess he somehow got himself into.

"Wait-execution?!" the man squawked. Olaf took in a breath to answer, when Elsa suddenly came back into the conversation.

"That's correct. You're guilty of freezing Arendelle," the queen told him. Sven backed her up on that with a nod.

"Who's Arendelle?!" he questioned.

"Arendelle's not a person. It's a kingdom."

"_Freezing_ Arendelle?!"

"I'm just about done with you."

"But I didn't do anything! I've never left home, let alone go to some place and freeze it!" he claimed. Elsa narrowed her eyes and strode up to the cave entrance, pointing out into the storm.

"You're telling me that you're the only other person with ice magic, and you didn't create this storm!? Stop trying to act innocent! The proof is trailing off your feet!" she yelled. Self-consciously he looked down at his feet, just noticing that snow was crawling out from under them.

"Well, you have the same magic! You could have done it!" he eventually told her. There was a dangerous pause after he said that, and regrets about letting it slip filled his mind.

"What did you say?" she asked him, her words damp with hostility.

"I-I-"

"_What_ did you say?"

"N-nothing?"

"Alright then. Let's hope not," the queen finished, her tone of voice similar to that of a mother about to punish her child. The stranger kept his eyes locked on Elsa, expecting her to blast him with snow, but surprisingly, she didn't. Instead, she turned away and sat quietly against the cave wall, seemingly lost in thought. As soon as he was sure Elsa had cooled off, Olaf continued talking with the criminal.

"Mr. Raider, she's just feeling a bit mad at you because you froze her sister's wedding, but as soon as you get to know her, she's the nicest, gentlest, warmest-"

"Olaf, there won't be any 'getting to know me'," Elsa suddenly cut in.

"Well, then, I know you've done some bad things, but that doesn't make you a bad per-"

"Olaf, no. He's already a bad person."

"Okay, but I can get to know y-"

"No, Olaf! No one here is going to get friendly with him," the queen declared, glaring at the man. The snowman sighed, running out of options.

"Well, I guess I'll just have to have a brief, business-like conversation with you, then," he said. "You go first! Ask me a question!" he yelled out, suddenly full of energy. The prisoner hesitated, what was happening at that moment obviously way too much for him to take in.

"Uh, did she build you?" he started, gesturing towards Elsa.

"Yeah. Why?" the snowman questioned.

"And... your alive?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well, does she make other living snow things?"

"Well, once she did. 'Named him Marshmellow. But, sadly, he fell off a cliff. I've always hoped for a snowwoman girlfriend though... That would be nice..." Olaf rambled, going off into a romantic daydream.

"What-?"

"Nope, no more questions. Brief conversation, remember?" Olaf announced, suddenly shuffling away from the raider. "Well, good-night," the snowman bid him, bouncing over to where Elsa sat, leaving the stranger to stare their way in wonder. Olaf tapped the queen's shoulder, trying to get her attention. She turned her head to look at her friend, and her eyes were instantly greeting by a beaming snowman.

"I don't think he did it, Elsa. I've had a very serious talk with him, and he sounds pretty innocent," Olaf whispered proudly to his maker. Elsa sighed, worn through by Olaf's naivety.

"Olaf, that's exactly what he wants you to think. He's only pretending to be innocent in hope to get himself out of this," she told him. The snowman blinked, glancing back at the criminal who was taking in his surroundings in what looked like severe fright.

"Uhh... Are you sure?" he asked cutely.

"I'm positive. Remember what Pabbie said? This man's cursed. Evil. Nothing good can come from him," she reminded her creation. He shrugged, supposedly satisfied with her justification.

"I guess you're right, then," he gave in, shuffling back to his comfy cave corner. But even though her words were said with confidence, doubts filled Elsa's mind. She gazed back out into the storm. Had they really picked up the wrong person? He sure did look like he was lost. Was he really telling the truth? What if-

_No._

This was exactly how Prince Hans tricked her and Anna. She wasn't going to fall for it again. She wasn't going to be manipulated by another liar...

~*O*o*O*~

When things quieted down and everyone had fallen asleep, eerie whispers and giggles surrounded the cave. A pair of saber's teeth shone in the moonlight as she smiled at them.

_"Well, well, well... Look who our little queen has found..."_

* * *

**_A.N. "Thank you, everyone who's read, reviewed, favorited, or followed this story! I just love you guys so much!"_**


End file.
